The database released today by the Mexican Attorney General’s office shows 12,903 people were murdered in Mexico in drug-war related violence in the first nine months of 2011.  That brings the official total up to 47,515 – without counting the final three months of last year.

The border metropolis of Ciudad Juárez continued to rank as Mexico’s deadliest city, with more than 1,206 murders. The coastal resort and port city of Acapulco registered nearly 795 murders in the nine-month period.

Data also showed an increase in violence in some rural areas – most notably in the states of Guerrero and Tamaulipas. April 2011 ranks as the deadliest month on record, with 1,630 confirmed murder victims; hundreds of whom were found in mass graves.

Some observations and analysis tweeted as I read the database for the first time (will re-format this section later)

A single massacre on Monday in Zitácuaro, Michoacán exceeds the total number of dead registered in a 9 month period in the same town.

Others have noted the spike in homicides in Acapulco, #Guerrero. The increase in murders in rural parts of the state is also significant.

Data shows Torreón had an especially violent year as well. Triple digit death tolls in Durango in April-May seem to be from the mass graves.

Newspaper estimates generally put the death toll for Monterrey at far higher than the 399 noted in the new database. Why? Counting suburbs?

As was to be expected, the highest death tolls attributed to the #DrugWar in Oaxaca occurred in Tuxtepec & Loma Bonita (near Veracruz line).

Aside about Oaxaca: the homicide data in the new PGR database doesn’t include murders in the Triqui region or the massacre in Choapam (Mixe)

Officially in #Tamaulipas: San Fernando 292 (many in mass graves), Nuevo Laredo 144, Valle Hermoso 95, Matamoros 72, Tampico 63, Reynosa 51.

Aside on Tamaulipas: Tiny Ciudad Mier registered 50 murders from Jan-Sept30th 2011; just 1 less than those documented in the city of Reynosa

As with Zitácuaro, Michoacán…a single massacre of 31 people this month in Altamira, Tamaulipas exceeded the 9 month total in the database.

There’s also been an increase in murders in #Veracruz state, esp in Veracruz (port city), Boca del Rio, & Panuco. Where’s Acayucan’s data?

Database total of 12,903 murders in 9months= monthly average of 1434 murders. A total of 17K+ for all 2011 seems like a probable projection.

While *official* documentation shows 47K+ #DrugWar deaths in Mexico Dec06-Sept11, using monthly averages to fill in Oct-Dec = more than 50K.

More #DrugWar database math: 12,903 murders in the first 9 months (273 days) of 2011 comes to an average of 47 homicides a day.

Thirteen bodies were dumped early this morning at a gas station in Zitácuaro in the Pacific Coast state of Michoacán. Local media reports indicate the victims all were shot in the head and that three were minors. The state body responsible for murder investigations had not released a written press statement with further details as of deadline.

The act of dumping multiple corpses in public spaces has increased in recent months. In at least two notable cases, the piles of bodies were accompanied by brazen messages from rival groups considered to be at a tactical disadvantage in the area where the bodies were left.

The last double digit body dump was on Christmas morning near Tampico, Tamaulipas – not far from the state line with Veracruz. The massacre also comes one week after the murder of 31 inmates at a Tamaulipas prison.

[Transcript of a headline produced for the January 9, 2012 broadcast of FSRN.]